daily inspirations, curiosities, and obsessions

If you’re stuck in the East Coast’s almost perpetual winter barrage like Lilo and I are, I’m sure the novelty of snow has well worn off.

Let me change that for you.

As we all know, outside snow is cold and wet; there is only so long you can make snowballs, igloos, snowmen, ice facials (stick your face in snow, pretend to be a Real Housewife who can’t feel her face anymore but looks sooo good!), and chocolatesnow cones (add a little water to Hershey’s syrup, pour the mixture on top of a bowl of snow, eat it) until your hands turn blue.

. . . but what about INSIDE snow?

“What’s that?!” you say?

Well, children, don’t get too excited! It’s paper, not magic.

That’s right, let’s make snowflakes.

Snowflakes are for all ages, require few resources, and serve a decorative purpose. You can make them while binge watching Twin Peaks on Netflix. They make people happy. Get excited for snowflakes, dammit.

INSTRUCTIONS:

First, find any piece of paper. The one I’m using in this picture is construction paper, but printer paper is always a classic. Sometimes I use linen paper if I want to be fancy, but it is truly up to you.

Find a pair of scissors that are sharp and easily manipulated. For this reason I would advise against using kitchen shears.

Now, we have to turn the rectangular piece of paper into a square.

To do this, first take the lower left corner and pull it diagonally to make the left edge and the top edge flesh.

Once they match, crease the paper to hold the fold.

Now, cut the remaining rectangle off.

The remaining paper is now square shaped, but leave it folded into a triangle.

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Fold the right corner of the triangle to the center point.

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Do this again to the left side, bringing the left point to center.

This creates a diamond shape.

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Fold this diamond shape in half, using the line in which the previously folded sides meet as your axis.

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This is a top view of the final result.

From here, cut as your heart desires! Just do not slice either of the folded sides off completely, as they hold your snowflake together.

I like to take inspiration from the patterns on Nordic sweaters, plants, Native American tribal patterns, and architecture. Lately, I have been deeply inspired by the work of British interior decorator David Hicks and his geometric patterns. (I will certainly do a post on him on the future.)

You could find inspiration from Gothic architectural features such as rose windows, pointed arches, and the quatrefoil shape.

Or just snip away randomly! You do you!

If you don’t have a pair of scissors handy, or just don’t want to clean up the resulting confetti byproduct, there’s an app for that. I recommend Paper Snow 2.

Flowers usually serve as an instant pick-me-up for me, so it’s weird that receiving these long stem roses would make me feel melancholy.

Let’s be honest, I may have 99 problems, but flowers on my doorstep ain’t even one. Would roses from any other suitor smell as sweet? Rationally, no.

Did I just follow a Jay-Z reference with a Shakespeare one? Ain’t nothing but a G thang.

I need to stop.

With Valentine’s Day coming up, I’m sure you won’t need an excuse to pick up some roses either for your honeybunny or yourself.

A few things you should keep in mind when buying roses:

Examine the edges of the petals to make sure they aren’t browning– a sign that these flowers might have been bruised in transit.

Lightly squeeze the thick part of the flower between your thumb and index finger. The flower should feel hard, meaning that the petals are still tightly closed. Flowers that are too loose will not live as long.

Keep heat away from the roses. This includes body heat from your hands or breath. Heat will cause the flowers to open, and therefore die sooner.

If you are gifting these flowers to a host or hostess of a dinner party, it is rude to arrive with them sans vase. The host should not have to interrupt their activities to tend to your gift.

When arranging roses in a vase, be sure to lightly grasp them to avoid sicking yourself with thorns. Cut each stem diagonally, about an inch from its end, and immediately place the flower in cold water.

L and I have been entertaining the idea of starting this blog for a while, but it took months of think tanks and redesigns to actually get here; because if there’s one thing we are, it’s prepared.

And sarcastic.

And experimental with grammar.

This past month has been rough for both of us, (Most people I know are going through some sh!t. I’m blaming Mercury, but this site tells me I’m wrong.) so it’s funny that we’re choosing now to start this, but I think we need a distraction.

Let’s take a moment celebrate the little things that bring us joy. That is our agenda with this blog, along with sharing tips, tricks, and hacks we’ve discovered.